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SINGAPORE: Singapore has intercepted another illegal shipment of pangolin scales just five days after a record haul was seized.

The second haul was detected on Monday (Apr 8) in a 40-footer container that was on its way from Nigeria to Vietnam, the National Parks Board (NParks), Singapore Customs and Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said in a media release on Wednesday.

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The container was declared to contain cassia seeds, but upon inspection, 12.7 tonnes of pangolin scales worth about US$38 million (S$52 million) were uncovered, authorities said.

The pangolin scales, which filled 474 bags, came from two species and around 21,000 pangolins would have been killed for them.

The scales seized were from the giant ground pangolin and the white-bellied tree pangolin, said NParks. Both species are considered vulnerable by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

Among the scales seized were those of the Giant Ground Pangolin. (Photo: NParks)

International trade in pangolin is prohibited under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES), which Singapore is a signatory to.

Under Singapore's Endangered Species (Import & Export) Act, anyone convicted of the illegal import, export and re-export of wildlife, their parts and derivatives can be fined up to S$500,000 and/or jailed up to two years.

Pangolin scales are used in traditional medicines in East Asia despite little evidence that they have any curative effects.